After the battle against Zhan Tiri there were a lot of repairs to be made in the kingdom of Corona. Eugene knew that as princess Rapunzel took her responsibility towards her people very seriously, but she also took her responsibility to her friends seriously, and at the moment she felt that Cassandra needed her more than the general populace did.
Eugene didn't know whether he agreed with that or not, but it was Rapunzel's choice, and he supported her. She and Cassandra had both been through so much, so perhaps it was only fair that they finally have the chance to relax and properly talk through all the bitter feelings that had been festering these past few months.
Eugene let them be, giving them the privacy they needed. He spent most of his days helping to rebuild Corona and bring order back. Eugene found himself overseeing many of the general building projects. He made sure things were properly delegated and prioritized.
It was odd to have so many people look to him for guidance, but as captain of the guard and practically prince consort of Corona, as well as the actual prince of the Dark Kingdom, it was something he figured he would need to get used to.
Eugene tried not to think too much about the prince of the Dark Kingdom thing, but it was a little difficult to ignore when Hector and Adira of all people started to show him more respect than even the Coronan guards that worked under him did. Adira still snarked at him and got under his skin without even trying, and she questioned him on every decision he made, but in the end she always followed his word. The weirdest thing though was that Adira had stopped calling him Fishskin. She insisted on calling him Horace.
Eugene had tried to talk to his dad to see if he could say a few words to her, convince her to at least call him by his preferred name, but his dad had just shrugged and said there was nothing he could do. Adira called people what she wanted. For the most part that involved nicknames, with the Brotherhood being the one exception. And both Eugene and Varian, as sons of two of the knights of the Brotherhood, seemed to fall under that category.
The whole thing with Adira would take some getting used to, but what really got under Eugene's skin was what Hector did. His only experiences with the man had been him trying to kill them, and now the warrior seemed to deem himself Eugene's personal guardian.
Hector always seemed to be there, watching him. At first Eugene had thought that Hector hadn't trusted him, but then he had seen Cassandra for the first time since the battle, and Hector went into protector mode. The older man had forced himself between Eugene and Cassandra before a word could be said between them. Hector hadn't said a word, he'd just growled at Cass, getting the message across loud and clear. He saw her as a threat still, and didn't trust her near his prince.
It was odd to be protected by somebody that had only ever tried to kill him, but Eugene's dad, as well as Quirin and Adira, had all said that this was all completely normal for Hector. He was a fierce and protective person when it came to those that he saw as his pack (Adira's words, not his), and just like with Adira, that apparently now included Eugene.
As he started to spend more time with the Brotherhood Eugene slowly started to warm up to them. They weren't nearly as horrifying and annoying as he thought they were. Still, he was waiting for the day when they returned to the Dark Kingdom. He didn't really understand what they were still doing in Corona. What was keeping them here?
When he had tried to ask his dad about it the man had grown stiff and serious. Eugene may not know his dad very well, but he knew him well enough to know that he wasn't an overly serious man, not unless something was wrong. His slight concern had increased when his dad hadn't given him a clear answer as to why they were still in Corona. His dad was someone who always spoke his mind. It was odd for him to not be talking about something.
Eugene was left to his confusion for a few weeks before it came to a head. Just when Corona was starting to get back to normal Rapunzel made a royal announcement, officially pardoning Cassandra of her crimes against Corona. Eugene had known that this was coming, and he'd also expected the crowd's reaction.
The people of Corona were used to criminals being punished far more harshly than the crime deserved. It would take them time to get used to Rapunzel's mercy. Eugene still got a few nasty glances from suspicious citizens that expected the worst from him, and he knew that Lance and Varian had been faced with much the same, and worse.
Eugene took it upon himself to protect both Cassandra and Rapunzel from the people's suspicions. They were both struggling so much right now, and their relationship was still fragile. He didn't want to let anything happen to make things even harder for them.
A fair number of people glared at Cassandra during the announcement, but to Eugene's shock the people who seemed most infuriated and upset by Cassandra's pardoning was the Brotherhood. Adira and King Edmund both looked disappointed and sad, and Eugene didn't understand why. Quirin and Hector were both furious. Looking at them, one would think that Cassandra's pardoning was a personal insult to them.
During the party to celebrate the kingdom's recovery, as well as Cassandra's pardoning, the Brotherhood seemed to slink off to the side. Even Varian, who seemed pretty upset himself, seemed to disappear from the crowd. After pulling Lance aside and asking him to keep an eye on Rapunzel and Cass for him, Eugene left the ballroom to look for the Brotherhood. It was his duty, both to Corona and to the Dark Kingdom, to make sure there wasn't anything seriously wrong.
He easily found the Brotherhood in a study on the other side of the castle. Hector was shouting furiously and punching a statue. He was probably hurting himself more than he was damaging the metal, but he seemed unbothered by it. Adira was pacing, annoyed. Quirin and King Edmund were whispering to each other in hushed tones. Varian was leaning close to his dad's side, looking like a scared little kid.
"What's going on in here?" Eugene asked. "Are none of you in a party mood?"
Hector snapped away from his statue and turned his glare to Eugene. "Did you know they'd do this? Did you know the lady-in-waiting was getting off easy?"
Eugene squared his shoulders back as he met Hector's glare with one of his own. "So what if I did?" He didn't understand why theBrotherhood would be upset about this. They weren't Coronans. What did they care if Cass was shown mercy?
King Edmund came up to Hector and put a hand on his shoulder, pulling him back. "Calm yourself, brother. Horace is not the one you're mad at." Eugene's dad cringed as he corrected himself. "Sorry, Eugene."
"Are you guys mad at Cass?" Eugene frowned at the Brotherhood. The looks on all their faces was answer enough.
"Of course we are." Hector scoffed. "And now the princess is on that list too."
Eugene felt defensive on his girlfriend's behalf. "Why? She's never done anything to any of you."
Quirin's brow furrowed angrily and he pulled Varian closer to him. "That's debatable."
"Dad," That was all that Varian said, but it seemed to be enough for Quirin. The man sighed and his anger fell from his shoulders. He looked tired. Quirin whispered a reassurance to Varian before passing the boy into King Edmund's protective hold.
"We're not exactly angry with the princess," Quirin said, though his tone certainly implied otherwise. "But we don't agree with her decision."
Eugene wasn't exactly surprised, but that didn't make him feel any less confused. "Why not?" Maybe he would be able to explain Rapunzel's decision to them in a way that they would understand. People who were on the outside looking in might not understand how complicated and nuanced the whole moonstone situation had been.
The anger was back in Quirin's eyes. "I understand that the princess has forgiven her friend of all the wrongs she's done against her, and that's fine, but Rapunzel wasn't the only one hurt by Cassandra's actions. She may be the princess, but she shouldn't have the right to forgive a crime against my family."
For a moment Eugene had no idea what Quirin was talking about, but then his gaze fell on Varian, who was looking a little nervous and uncomfortable with the situation. Eugene felt guilty for not considering this. Varian's kidnapping had been taken into account when they'd considered all of Cassandra's crimes, but it had been looked at through Rapunzel's eyes.
Rapunzel had seen it as her friend being kidnapped to get to her. She had taken it personally, and maybe in some ways that had been part of Cass' motivation, but despite what Rapunzel and Cass seemed to believe, their fight hadn't just affected the two of them.
Varian had been the one to be kidnapped. He had been drugged, hurt, and endangered. He or Quirin should have at least been consulted about Cassandra's pardoning of that particular crime.
"You're right," Eugene said. Varian immediately relaxed. "We should have talked to you first. We can still talk to Rapunzel about this." Eugene stepped away from Quirin, approaching Varian. He put a hand on the boy's shoulders and bent slightly to be closer to his level, marvelling at the fact that he no longer had to kneel to look Varian in the eye. When had the boy gotten so tall?
"But you know, even if Rapunzel still pardons Cassandra, that doesn't mean that you have to forgive her." Eugene said quietly. "Cass dragged you into something that didn't involve you. She hurt you, and no matter how hurt she was feeling she should have never taken that out on you. If you don't feel comfortable around Cassandra, that's fine. You don't have to be around her."
Varian gave Eugene a small smile. "Thanks," He sounded so relieved that Eugene felt a small pang. He'd been so busy making sure that Rapunzel and Cass were okay that he'd pushed Varian to the back of his mind. He hadn't noticed that the kid was bothered by the whole Cassandra thing, and he'd allowed him to worry about his friends getting mad at him for his feelings. Eugene shouldn't have allowed this to happen, and he swore to do a better job at keeping an eye on Varian from now on.
King Edmund looked thoughtful. "If that's what you believe...Eugene, there's something I've been meaning to talk to you about."
Eugene straightened and looked at his dad. "What's going on?" Whatever it was, it seemed to be bothering the whole Brotherhood, because they all looked personally invested in the conversation. "Is something wrong?"
"Your friend has been pardoned by Corona," King Edmund said. "However, do you know if she will receive immunity from any justice that the Dark Kingdom may want to pass?"
Eugene stared at his dad in shock, wondering if this was a joke or something, but the expression on his face was very serious, as were the other members of the Brotherhood. "Hang on, you want to punish Cassandra?"
"Justice and punishment aren't the same thing," Quirin said stiffly as he glanced at his son. "Punishment is hurting someone for doing something. Justice involves righting wrongs that have been done."
Eugene eyed the brotherhood carefully. "You guys think that Cassandra wronged the Dark Kingdom?"
"She stole the moonstone." Hector growled. "It's our kingdom's most sacred artifact and most powerful weapon. Trying to steal the moonstone is a very serious crime in our kingdom."
"Corona saw the sundrop flower similarly," Varian said quietly. Even though the flower was useless, it was still the kingdom's most precious treasure, and a punishable crime to steal it."
Eugene crossed his arms and found himself nodding. "Alright, that's fair." Eugene hadn't considered that Cassandra taking the moonstone had meant stealing from the Dark Kingdom. He had always seen it as her trying to steal from Rapunzel, and he knew that his friends had seen it in much the same way.
He now saw that they should have done better at considering the bigger picture. Cassandra had just wanted to hurt Rapunzel, who sometimes had trouble understanding the way that people felt when it wasn't specifically explained to her. Cassandra may have only had problems with Rapunzel and Corona, but she'd used the Dark Kingdom and its people to get what she wanted.
Eugene took a deep breath and sat down on a nearby chair. He gestured for his dad to sit across from him. "Please, share your grievances. Maybe we can find a compromise that we're all happy with." There were all things that would need to be said to Rapunzel, who was primarily responsible for Cassandra's pardoning. Eugene knew his girlfriend well though, and he knew that she would take this kind of information much better if it was given to her from somebody that she knew and loved.
King Edmund gave him an appreciative smile as he sat down. Hector came to stand just behind his king. Adira leaned against the wall, listening intently. Varian eagerly sat down on the ground in front of Eugene's chair while Quirin stood nearby, protectively.
"In addition to stealing the moonstone, she enslaved us." King Edmund said. "Using the mind-trap she turned us into her puppets."
"We've dedicated our lives to protecting the moonstone and keeping it out of the hands of those who would abuse its power," Hector said. "When that girl took the moonstone, she made herself the enemy of the Dark Kingdom, but when she took the mind-trap, she made herself our master. It's a cruel irony that our loyalty and dedication was used against us."
Quirin stiffened, looking pained. "Because of that girl's inferiority complex I was almost forced to hurt my own son." He closed his eyes and shook his head. "That's something I swore to myself I would never do."
"You almost died by my hand." King Edmund said quietly. "I assume that there were other instances where she threatened your life."
"Well, sure, but I don't think she would have really gone through with it." Eugene said. He hated the thought that Cassandra would have fallen so far, that she would hate them so much, that she would have actually taken his life.
"I think she would have." Varian said quietly, almost inaudibly. They all turned their attention onto him. Varian didn't lift his eyes from the floor. "At first, I thought she was like me. I thought she was just angry and lashing out because she thought she didn't have a choice, but deep down she didn't really want to hurt anybody. I thought she would see the error of her ways and make things right."
"But she did," Eugene argued. Varian just shook his head.
"I asked Rapunzel," Varian said quietly. "She said that Cass didn't come back until after she'd already lost the moonstone." Varian wrapped his arms around himself. "She came crawling back to Rapunzel after she'd already lost everything. How do we know she actually regrets anything that she'd done? What if she just came back because she didn't have any other choice?"
Eugene grimaced. "Cass has apologized."
"She apologized to Rapunzel," Varian growled. Quirin knelt beside Varian and put a hand on his shoulder. Varian leaned into his touch. "I haven't heard a word from her. She hasn't apologized for kidnapping me, or breaking my ribs, or enslaving my dad-"
"Whoa, whoa, hang on," Eugene held up his hands as he stared at Varian in shock. "Cassandra broke your what?"
"My ribs," Varian shifted uncomfortably. "I don't think she was thinking about how much force she was putting into it, but she still hurt me."
Eugene didn't think it mattered if Cass knew the extent of Varian's injuries or not. She'd attacked Varian, and that wasn't okay. Eugene was tempted to ask when this had happened, but there was only one time when Cass had the chance to hurt Varian. "Did this happen when she'd kidnapped you?" Varian nodded. "How could we not have noticed?"
Varian shrugged. "I-I wanted to hide it from you." He wrapped his arms around himself. "I thought about saying something on the way back home, but Rapunzel was so upset about Cass, and she wouldn't stop talking about how she missed her chance to get her friend back, and it just didn't seem like the right time."
Eugene was horrified. How could they have missed so much? Eugene had been trying so hard to support Rapunzel, who was hurting because of the whole Cassandra situation, but Varian was right, they weren't the only ones who had been affected by what Cass had done. How many people had been hurt by Cassandra, and how many of them were keeping quiet because they felt like they couldn't speak badly about the princess' friend?
Well, Eugene had never had a hard time holding back from either Rapunzel or Cassandra. He would have to have words with both of them. Cass needed to understand just what she had done, and Rapunzel needed to know that she had a lot more influence than she thought she did, and if she wasn't careful that hold that she had over her citizens could go too far.
"I don't really see myself in Cassandra as much anymore," Varian looked around somewhat nervously. "I-I see Andrew." Varian shuddered. "He said what he was doing was justice, that it was what Corona deserved. H-he thought that the world owed him something, and he tried to take it by force, just like Cass."
Eugene didn't know how much he agreed, but he didn't say anything. Varian seemed really upset, and almost afraid. He'd already said that he was worried about speaking his mind to Rapunzel, and Eugene didn't want to give Varian any reason to hold his tongue with him too. Besides, Varian knew Andrew much better than Eugene ever had, and though Eugene knew Cassandra better, Varian probably had spent more time with her when she was furious and desperate than Eugene had.
Even if he didn't agree, Eugene thought that Varian's opinion was at least worth listening to. He deserved to be heard out. So did the Brotherhood.
Eugene looked back to his dad, who was watching them with sad eyes. "Y-you're right, your kingdom was wronged, and you probably do deserve justice." Eugene was quiet for a moment. "What would that justice look like anyway?" As much as they had the right to have their voices heard, Eugene thought that executing Cassandra was taking things too far.
"We considered locking her in the Dark Kingdom's dungeon," King Edmund said. Eugene felt a flare of protective concern for his friend, but his dad continued before that concern could rear its head. "However, as young Varian has pointed out, locking someone up encourages resentment, not redemption."
Eugene let out a sigh of relief. "Thank you,"
"It's also for the sake of my people." King Edmund looked towards Adira and then glanced at Hector. "The Brotherhood has served the Dark Kingdom and protected the moonstone for so long. We're finally free from the moon's curse. I want to begin to rebuild our kingdom, not ask my loyal warriors to confine themselves to guard duty."
So it was more for the Brotherhood, not for Cassandra. That was fine. The end result was the same.
"So what did you have in mind?" Eugene asked.
"We would send her out to find our scattered people." King Edmund said. "I sent the citizens of the Dark Kingdom away twenty five years ago, but without the threat of the moonstone there's no reason for them to stay away. I want my people to know that they still have a home in our kingdom, if they want it."
"And you want Cassandra to find them?" Eugene raised an eyebrow. That hadn't been what he had expected at all.
"In threatening you, she nearly destroyed the future of the Dark Kingdom," Adira said. "We thought it was only fair that she repay her debt by helping us begin a new future for our kingdom."
Eugene nodded. That did sound fair, and reasonable. However, Eugene could still see a problem with it. "Cassandra's isn't going to be very happy about it." This whole thing had started because Cass had felt like everybody was telling her what to do, taking away her personal freedom. She would despise the idea of having to bend over to the will of a kingdom that wasn't even hers.
Hector snarled. "No offense, your highness, but your friend stole our free will. Right now I couldn't care less about how happy she's going to be about this."
Eugene flinched slightly and rubbed the back of his neck. Hector had a point, they all did. Eugene didn't really like it, but they were right. The Dark Kingdom had suffered under Cassandra's hand. Of course they wouldn't accept a full pardoning for her, because in their eyes she hadn't earned it.
"I'll talk to Rapunzel," Eugene said.
"Hopefully that won't be necessary," King Edmund said. "I intended on speaking to the princess, as well as the king and queen, myself, from one ruler of a kingdom to another." Eugene's dad gave him a sad smile. "However, I would appreciate it if I had your support in this. I fear that if Corona saw that we were divided in Cassandra's fate, then they would reject our pleas."
"You're probably right," Eugene said. He knew that Rapunzel would loathe the idea of Cassandra having to deal with the consequences of her crimes, as Rapunzel thought that she had suffered enough as it was. Knowing his girlfriend, Eugene knew that if his dad just spoke to her and her parents on his own, Rapunzel would come right to him and ask him to speak to his dad in Cassandra's defense. Their best chance to get through to Rapunzel was if Eugene stood in solidarity with his father.
"I'll stand with you." Eugene said. He looked at Varian, and then glanced at all the members of the Brotherhood. "All of you." He may still be getting used to the idea of being a prince, but the Dark Kingdom and its people were still his responsibility, whether he liked it or not.
Eugene may believe that Cassandra deserved a second chance, but the people of the Dark Kingdom and Corona all deserved justice and reassurance. They needed to know that their pain mattered too.
Eugene may be a prince, but he had grown up as a poor orphan boy who had nothing. He had been hurt, manipulated, and taken advantage of more time than he could count, and many of his abusers had gotten away with it scot-free just because they'd had friends in high places. He knew how it felt to be helpless, like the entire world was against him, and he didn't want to be responsible for making anybody else feel like that.
Eugene now had far more power and influence than he ever thought was possible. He'd enjoyed the luxuries and high life that came with his positions, and now he was going to use that power to help others who couldn't help themselves. He knew he wouldn't be able to fix every injustice in the world, but if he could make a difference for just one lost citizen, it would be worth it.